Historical Events in 1852

American Geographical Society

Feb 21 George Bancroft becomes the American Geographical Society's first president

Feb 26 British troopship Birkenhead sinks off South Africa, 458 die, 193 survive
Mar 1 Archibald William Montgomerie, 13th Earl of Eglinton appointed Lord Lieutenant of Ireland.
Mar 3 14th Grand National: Alec Goodman wins first of 2 GN victories (1866) aboard Miss Mowbray
Mar 7 Dutch telegraph traffic regulated by law
Mar 13 Uncle Sam cartoon figure made its debut in the New York Lantern weekly

War Breaks Out Behind Uncle Tom's Cabin

Mar 20 Harriet Beecher Stowe's "Uncle Tom's Cabin" published in Boston

Harriet Beecher Stowe as painted in 1853 by Alanson Fisher. Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery

Mar 25 Friedrich Hebbel's tragedy "Agnes Bernauer" premieres in Munich
Mar 26 Decree regarding streets of Paris passed
Mar 29 Ohio makes it illegal for children under 18 and women to work more than 10 hours a day
Apr 19 California Historical Society is founded

Roget's Thesaurus

Apr 29 1st edition of Peter Roget's Thesaurus published in Great Britain

Lexicographer and Inventor Peter Mark Roget

Music Premiere

Apr 30 Anton Rubinstein's opera "Dmitri Donskoi" premieres in St Petersburg, Russia

Pianist, Composer and Conductor Anton Rubinstein

Deutsches Wörterbuch

May 1 Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm publish the first part of their German Dictionary "Deutsches Wörterbuch" (fully completed 1961)

May 1 The Philippine peso is introduced into circulation
May 8 Second London protocol signed reaffirming Danish federation control of independent Duchies of Holstein, Lauenburg and Schleswig
May 18 Massachusetts rules all school-age children must attend school
Jul 3 Congress authorizes US's 2nd mint (San Francisco, California)

What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?

Jul 5 Frederick Douglass, fugitive slave, delivers his 'What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?' speech to the Ladies' Anti-Slavery Society in Rochester, condemns the celebration as hypocritical sham

Jul 9 Fire destroys 1,100 construction sites in Montreal, Canada
Jul 23 Private John Brown becomes the 1st interment in the National Cemetery at the Presidio in San Francisco, California
Jul 31 Hottest July in Netherlands since at least 1783 (68.4°F (20.2°C) avg)
Aug 1 San Francisco Methodists establish 1st black church, Zion Methodist
Aug 3 America's first intercollegiate sporting event takes place as the Harvard heavyweight rowing crew beats Yale by 2 lengths over 2 miles on Lake Winnipesaukee, New Hampshire
Aug 13 Steamer "Atlantic" crossing Lake Erie from Buffalo to Detroit collides with a fishing boat, sinks with 250 aboard
Aug 21 Tlingit Indians destroy Fort Selkirk, Yukon Territory.
Sep 3 Anti-Jewish riots break out in Stockholm, Sweden
Sep 11 Olympia Columbian is 1st newspaper published north of Columbia River
Sep 14 Samuel D Hubbard of Conn takes office as 18th US Postmaster General
Sep 24 Henri Giffard, a French engineer, makes 1st engine powered dirigible/airship flight with steam power
Sep 27 George Aiken's play "Uncle Tom's Cabin" an adaptation of Harriet Beecher Stowe's famous anti-slavery novel premieres in Troy, New York

Historic Expedition

Oct 1 Alfred Russel Wallace returns to the U.K. after four years of travel, collecting, and research in South America

Naturalist, Biologist and Explorer Alfred Russel Wallace

Oct 11 The University of Sydney, Australia's oldest university, is inaugurated in Sydney.
Oct 16 Dutch government recognize Catholics right to organize

Election of Interest

Nov 2 Franklin Pierce elected as President of US

Nov 4 Count Camillo Benso di Cavour becomes the prime minister of Piedmont-Sardinia, which soon expands to become Italy
Nov 18 Rose Philippine Duchesne dies in St. Charles, Missouri. She would be canonized on July 3, 1988 by Pope John Paul II.
Nov 18 State funeral of Duke of Wellington (St Paul's Cathedral, London)
Nov 20 Charles Reade and Tom Taylor's historical comedy play "Masks & Faces" premieres in London
Nov 21 Duke University founded in 1838 as Union Institute, chartered as Normal College
Nov 23 Just past midnight, a sharp jolt likely caused by heavy rains causes Lake Merced, California, to drop 30 feet (9m)
Dec 1 Telegraph company opens throughout Netherlands
Dec 8 Gustav Freytag's comedy play "The Journalists" premieres in Breslau
Dec 17 1st Hawaiian cavalry organized

Election of Interest

Dec 18 George Hamilton-Gordon (Peelite party) becomes Prime Minister of the United Kingdom after the downfall of the Conservative government of Edward Smith-Stanley